Hi, I am a 55 year old woman who has been overweight from my teens on. I have lost significant amounts of weight three times in my life--once intentionally :-)--but have put the weight back on plus a bit each time. I worked on a horse farm for 17 years (and still managed to remain 40 lbs overweight!), and now I am a cashier for Lowe's Home Improvement. I've come to really enjoy my job; but with the drastic decrease in physical activity, I've gained weight and lost muscle. In November I began to walk about an hour a day five days a week, and began to tackle my eating habits in January. In March I decided I needed to be a lot less casual in making changes. So far I have lost 33 pounds of the 80 that lie between where I began and where I would like to be.

SWE's Latest Posts

muscle cramps on Atkins
Hi. I like Atkins a lot; but one ... side effect? ... it has for me is leg and feet cramps that I do not get when I eat whatever I want. Since I tend to be an all or nothing sort of personality--either I am meticulous in watching what I eat or completely uncritical in what I am eating--, it is hard to figure what specifically of the "whatever I want" would be addressing the muscle cramps. Any ideas? I've heard leg cramps are tied to potassium deficiencies, and I know broccoli is supposed to be high in potassium--and broccoli is my primary vegetable on Atkins (I typically eat 6-12 ounces a day specifically of broccoli). I add to that cauliflower, squash, tomatoes, green beans,spinach and occasionally carrots. If potassium is the most likely culprit, anyone know how much potassium we're supposed to be getting daily? Thanks!

Specifying Serving Sizes for multiple portion recipes
Hi, anyone know how to input a meal and specify how many servings the ingredients encompass? I ate a muffin today, and I know the recipe, and I'd like to know what kind of "damage" I've done in eating one. I can input all the ingredients, but I don't see how to keep it from indicating that the "meal" is just one serving. Can anyone help? Thanks!

I've been losing in spurts. I had 11 come off in one week, then weeks with nothing! Then I had 3-4 come off in a week, and then again nothing! I keep tweaking as I find out where my infractions are, and I'm also trying to up my calories some after reading a post about the importance of meeting the needs of our Basal Metabolic Rate. I'm hoping the "tweaks" help with more consistent results. Good luck and I'm glad your hanging in there!

posted 31 Mar 2012, 09:28

Recommended Water Intake
Hi, I did Atkins before, and started up again recently "from memory". Some of the posts have addressed things that show my memory for detail is not as accurate as I'd hoped. I have a book on order, but until it arrives (I bought one at a bargain basement price, so shipping will be slower) could someone please tell me how much water we are supposed to be drinking during the Induction Phase? Thanks!